Being able to identify and highlight your transferable skills is crucial in transitioning to another industry, or even to another job. Not every job is the same, and hiring managers may not entirely relate to the tasks you list on your resume. But if you can fit your talents into one of these five main categories, you’ll present a resume that is much more to the point:

Human Relations

This category relates to any sort of interpersonal skills you use to deal with people in the workplace. Think listening, sensitivity, cooperation, empathy, or motivation. Chances are that if you worked with people at any point during your last job, you’ll bring some of these skills to the table.

Communication

Communication is all about effectively conveying knowledge and ideas to others. It also has a lot to do with how well you receive information from others. Are you a great writer, speaker, or listener? Can you negotiate, persuade others, pick up on nonverbal cues? If so, then you are likely a great communicator.

Research and Planning

This is just what it sounds like – the ability to seek out information and to formulate new ideas for the future. Any time you come up with new proposals, find an alternate solution, solve a problem, define a need, or set a goal, you are engaging in research and planning.

Organization, Management, and Leadership

This one is all about rallying your troops and leading them into battle. A good leader will coordinate plans of action, initiate new tasks, delegate responsibilities, teach, and manage conflict.

Work Survival/Professionalism

This last category includes all of the day-to-day skills that get you through the workday and promote an effective working environment. Skills such as showing up to work on time, meeting goals, paying attention to detail, and organizing fit into this category.

Even if you’re applying to a job from a field in which you have no experience, there’s always a way to pull from what you do know or have done on the past, and make it relevant to the unfamiliar. So the next time you apply for a job or draft a resume, bear in mind these transferable skills and show them what you’ve got!